Quinnipiac Poll: 72% of Voters Think Tariffs Will Harm US in Short Term

Most voters think President Donald Trump's tariffs will hurt the national economy in the short term, but fewer believe the effects will last long, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday.

The pollsters questioned 1,407 self-identified registered voters nationwide between April 3-7, and showed that 72% think the tariffs will have a negative short-term effect, but 53% think the tariffs will harm the country's economy in the long run. The results carried a margin of error of plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.

According to the survey, 22% also said they think the tariffs will help the U.S. economy in the short term.

The numbers, broken down by political party, show far more Democrats believe the tariffs will have a harmful short-term effect:

97% of Democrats, 77% of independents, and 44% of Republicans said they think the tariffs will hurt the economy in the short term.
46% of Republicans, 19% of independents, and 2% of Democrats said they think the tariffs will help.

Meanwhile, 53% of voters said they think the tariffs will hurt the economy in the long run, compared to 46% thinking the tariffs will help.

Those numbers, broken down by political party revealed:

95% of Democrats, 57% of independents, and 10% of Republicans think the tariffs will hurt the economy long-term.
87% of Republicans, 35% of independents, and 3% of Democrats said they think the tariffs will help.

Voters were also given a list of four economic issues, while being asked which issue worries them the most.

The results showed that 47% said they are most concerned about the prices of food and consumer goods; 20% said the cost of housing or rent worries them most; 17% said they are most concerned about the stock market; and 6% said their job situation is most concerning.

Most of the voters surveyed, at 60%, said that current economic conditions are not changing their purchasing decisions. About three in 10 voters said they are putting off large purchases, such as furniture or appliances, and 6% said they have bought big items sooner than they ordinarily would have to avoid prices going up.

Meanwhile, the poll also showed Trump's approval numbers remained about the same as in the March survey, with 41% saying they approve of how he is handling his job as president and 53% disapproving.

The numbers also remained about the same on Trump's handling of the economy, at 40% approving and 55% disapproving.

Voters also said they disapproved more on how Trump handles trade, with 39% approving and 55% disapproving.

In other results about how Trump is handling issues:

Immigration: 45% approve; 50% disapprove
Deportations: 42% approve; 53% disapprove
The federal workforce: 41% approve; 54% disapprove
Foreign policy: 40% approve; while 54% disapprove

The poll also asked voters about:

Use of Signal to discuss Yemen: 74% thought it was a very serious issue; 58%, somewhat serious; 22%, not so serious; 11%, not a problem at all.
National Security Adviser Mike Waltz's job approval: 32% approve; 50% disapprove; 18% did not offer an opinion.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's job approval: 48% disapprove; 36% approve; 17% did not offer an opinion.
Elon Musk: 57% believe he has too much decision-making power; 33% think he has the right amount of power; 5% think he has too little power.